Sept 8, Mexico City: The death toll in the massive 8.1 quake that struck Mexico Early Friday morning has crossed 33 people and is expected to rise further.

The earthquake described by Mexico's president as the country's strongest in a century has struck off the southern coast, killing at least 33 people.The quake, which President Enrique Peña Nieto said measured 8.2, struck in the Pacific, about 87km (54 miles) south-west of Pijijiapan.

Severe damage has been reported in Oaxaca and Chiapas states.A tsunami warning was initially issued for Mexico and other nearby countries, but later lifted.

The quake, which struck at 23:50 local time on Thursday (04:50 GMT Friday), was felt hundreds of miles away in Mexico City, with buildings swaying and people running into the street. The tremors there were reported to have lasted up to a minute.
President Peña Nieto said about 50 million Mexicans would have felt the tremor and that the death toll might rise.

According to reports,three people were killed in the state of Chiapas, while two children died in neighboring Tabasco state.
The epicenter of the quake was at a depth of 33 km (21 miles), 123 km (76 miles) southwest of the town of Pijijiapan, not far from the Guatemalan border.d five includin.

Meanwhile, a series of aftershocks ranging from 4.3 to 5.7 in magnitude have been recorded closer to the Mexican coast, off the town of ParedonSome electricity cuts have been reported in the capital but there are no reports of major damage there. One visitor to the city, Luis Carlos Briceno, told Reuters: "I had never been anywhere where the earth moved so much."
Resident Liliana Villa, who fled her apartment, said: "It felt horrible, and I thought, 'this is going to fall'."
Guatemalan President Jimmy Morales appealed for calm on national television and in a Twitter post. "We have reports of some damage and the death of one person, even though we still don't have exact details," Associated Press quoted Mr Morales as saying.

The US Tsunami Warning System said that the tsunami waves are likely to follow in eight neighboring countries, including Ecuador, Nicaragua, Panama, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, El Salvador, and Costa Rica.No tsunami warning has been issued for the US west coast.

Mexico is currently also being threatened on its eastern coast by Hurricane Katia.
The category one hurricane is about 300km south-east of Tampico and has sustained winds of 140km/h the National Hurricane Center says.